Chip Kelly may change the way the NFL thinks about going for two

During his tenure as Oregon’s head coach, Chip Kelly did something routinely that no NFL coach has done in nearly 15 years: He went for two-point conversions in the first quarter.

Now that Kelly is head coach of the Eagles, he may change the way NFL teams view the two-point conversion — if he continues to use the same strategy he used at Oregon, and if he’s successful.

In five of Oregon’s 13 games last season, the Ducks tried for a two-point conversion after scoring their first touchdown. Three of those five two-point tries were successful, and two were unsuccessful. When the Ducks didn’t go for two, they often sent out their field goal/PAT unit and had them line up in a trick-play formation, shifting into the standard kick formation only after seeing if the defense appeared ready to stop the play they planned to run.

Kelly’s approach to two-point conversions — trying them after taking a 6-0 lead, rather than only trying them late in the game when the “chart” says they should — is unheard of in the NFL. According to Aaron Schatz of FootballOutsiders.com, the last time a team tried for a two-point conversion in the first quarter (other than on bad snaps or fumbled holds when the team initially planned to kick the extra point) was in 1998. And even that play was done in an attempt to chase points by a team that had just scored a touchdown to narrow the deficit from 14-6 to 14-12 and wanted to tie the game with a two-point conversion.

In the 2012 season, teams only tried for two-point conversions in the first half four times. Three of those four teams did it after a touchdown narrowed the deficit from 14-6 to 14-12 in the second quarter, and the fourth was a trick play run by Bears holder Adam Podlesh.

Even in the third quarter, two-point tries are very rare: Only twice in 2012 did a team go for two in the third quarter. All 32 NFL teams treated two-point conversions as something you try only when you need to.

But that’s not the case with Kelly. Kelly’s view is that a two-point conversion at the start of the game is a great way to extend an early lead and make your opponent chase points later in the game. And at Oregon, it often worked. If Kelly doesn’t lose his nerve with the Eagles, he may become the first coach since the NFL introduced two-point conversions in 1994 to make going for two a routine part of the game plan, not a special play that’s broken out in an emergency.

The NFL is a copycat league, so if it works for Kelly and the Eagles, it won’t be long before other coaches begin to emulate him. It’s possible that we’ll start to see NFL teams go for two a lot more often. If so, Kelly will have made the NFL more fun.

I just cant wait to see what style he uses playing in the Nfc East dealing with all the speed ends the three divisional rivals have.

Overall this is the nice just because the Eagles have skills players to fit any scheme, I am anxious to see who he hires as a defensive coordinator and if he appoints someone as the offensive coordinator or is the Head Coach/offensive coordinator.

I don’t think he’ll be playing a similar schedule in the NFL. You know, like the top college schools typically play in the beginning of the season, the little no name d2 schools? But maybe you think they’ll be playing the CFL Chcago Bears?

I think the NFL has more of a chance to change Kelly. The officials are not going to spot the ball as quickly and allow the same pace of play he had in college. Not a chance. Period. Welcome to the NFL Chip.

Well if you look at it statistically all you have to do is believe that you have at least a 50% chance to convert to justify going for two, and a successful NFL offense should be able to pick up 2 yards at least half the time.

It’s pretty silly to assume whatever the guy did in college he’s going to come in and try to do in the NFL. In college his team was the heavy favorite in a lot of games, so trick plays were a little easier to do. I’ve noticed many underestimate his intelligence, as if he is unaware his Oregon teams have played against slower defenses than he will face in the NFL or he plans on calling identical plays.

You don’t go for two until the fourth quarter.
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I don’t recall seeing that on the tablets Moses brought down from Mt. Sinai. I also doubt that Coach Kelly much cares what some fan of a team that hasn’t made the playoffs in a decade thinks of his ideas.

My opinion (which also counts for nothing) is that Kelly wants teams around the league to start overthinking about what he plans to do.

There are two sure-fire ways to give hard earned momentum right away. One, kick a surprise onsides and the other team isnt fooled. Go for two for no reason and watch your RB get dropped for a 2 yd loss. When my G-Men play the Eegs 2x a year, I’ll pray that stache-less Reid with a visor goes for 2.

Don’t know how good his kickers in Oregon were, but in general I have the impression that extra-point kicks in college games are not as automatic as they are in the NFL. Seems like a lot more of them get missed at the college level. This makes going for 2, especially with a dynamic offense, a safer move than it would be in the NFL.

Though I think it could work in the NFL, there’s the problem of everyone playing not to lose. It’s trendy to claim the NFL is getting “wimpy” because of Goodell’s discipline or new rules, but really, the monetary stakes are so high for teams and coaches that almost everyone is playing so timidly to avoid screwing up, and the result is predictability. (Exhibit A: having one of the greatest QBs in history take a knee with 31 seconds left in the game instead of trying to win.)

It’s what makes the Patriots refreshing, honestly. They play to win. And this year, with changing styles on display in Washington, Seattle, and San Fran, even though those are partially desperation moves, at least they’re teams trying something different.

More likely that Kelly changes the way teams think about going for it on 4th down than changes the way they think about going for 2. Kelly went for it on fourth down a ton in college, and the statistics back it up as a sound strategy.

So everybody that has watched one Oregon game in there life suddenly knows that Chip Kelly will fail and be fired in season (and we all thank you for regurgitating everything they say on ESPN), you guys are probably right you can’t run a spread option in the NFL, so go home Kaepernick, Russell Wilson and RG3 I guess you guys didn’t get the memo.

I am in favor of the nfl just getting rid of kicking extra points altogether and having teams go for 2 points every time. There was a time in which the extra point wasn’t so automatic but now it more or less is. Think about how many times you don’t even pay attention to the extra point now too – it would just add to the excitement of the game.

Da-Her Da-Her Da-Her (retard voice) “Yea the Eagles wont win a game or even score a TD” Da-Her Da-Her Da-Her Durrrrrrr! Everyone thought Pete Carroll would fail. Maybe 2nd times a charm? This Kelly dude jerks off to football. If he doesnt do well, then maybe he should stop.

If you think Chip Kelly is going to school NFL Coaches your Dreaming. When he fails on the first attempt and the other teams scores a TD and now they trail by 1 then will be forced to go for it again. So the element of surprise is gone and he won’t be putting up 50 points a game in the NFL. When Eagles lose a division game or 2 by 1 or 2 points he will feel the wrath of the Philly crowd and it will stop.

If Kelly is so smart why did he break the rules at Oregon? Remember there’s no 90 man roster in the NFL and you have Vick as your QB. Also you have Desean “Glass House” Jackson and Michael “Don’t Hit Me” Vick and with no OL they won’t be running to many crazy plays when the QB is running for his life.

There is a reason its considered the “toughest three yards in football.” The field is 13 yards long so the box is always stacked, and no stretch for speedy receivers. If an offense has personnel and plays to consistently attack that scenario successfully, it’s less of a gamble. I see less reward for first quarter 2’s in the NFL, and correspondingly less risk, because offenses are more dynamic and can easily discount early deficits. Of course a bevy of strong 3 yard plays can only help any team.

Pile on you noble Eagles fans. Sure, stuff Chip will try at the NFL level may not work. If it doesn’t he will evaluate it, change it or abandon it. But he’s not stupid. He understands probabilities, and if he can find an edge – he goes for it.
Don’t expect him to keep trying to do things the “NFL way” – tell me how much success the Eagles have had doing it the same ‘ol same ‘ol. Rather than more of the same – sit back and enjoy the ride!
Win lose or draw, there’s nothing more exciting and entertaining than a Chip Kelly coached football game.

I didn’t watch the game so obviously I don’t know how the game ended. However, looking at the score, the two point attempt seemed to make sense. They lost by 10, with the two points they’re down by 8. For the sake of argument, if they have the ball on the last possession of the game, they can tie with a TD and another conversion. Then they go to OT and win, hypothetically.